Kimberly Weisenberger, OD, MS (l) and Nicole Christie Ross, OD, MSc, FAAO

ORLANDO—The American Academy of Optometry Foundation has announced recipients of additional awards and grants for 2020. They are: Kimberly Weisenberger, OD, MS, who was named as this year’s recipient of the Bert C. and Lydia M. Corwin Contact Lens Residency award, and Nicole Christie Ross, OD, MSc, FAAO, who is the 2020 recipient of the Fredric Rosemore Low Vision Educational Grant. Ross is an assistant professor of optometry in the Department of Specialty & Advanced Care at the New England College of Optometry (NECO). Dr. Weisenberger is a resident cornea and contact lens advanced practice fellow at The Ohio State University College of Optometry.

The Corwin award is intended to promote the practice and development of the field of contact lenses by providing incentive and support to talented optometric residents who demonstrate a passion and commitment to practice, research, and education.

“Dr. Weisenberger has the clinical knowledge and skills to manage the variety of patients in our clinics and provides a robust educational experience for our students in her role as a clinical attending and graduate teaching associate,” Nicky Lai, OD, MS, FAAO, associate professor of clinical optometry at The Ohio State University College of Optometry, said in the announcement

Weisenberger presented an impressive resume of experience in clinical, volunteer service, research, and lecture presentation, thus earning this prestigious award.

NECO’s Dr. Ross and her team, which includes Dr. Alexin Malkin, OD, FAAO, and Dr. Jeffrey Ho, OD, FAAO, said of their innovative project: Use of virtual reality technologies to support student education in patient care through telehealth in the field of low vision rehabilitation is intended to improve the quality of life for the visually impaired.

Erik Weissberg, OD, FAAO, vice president and dean of academic affairs, said, “NECO is committed to the continued integration of innovation in the use of technology within clinical care and the curriculum, and this worthy project will serve to advance this goal.”

The American Academy of Optometry Foundation (AAOF) is the 501(c)(3) philanthropic arm of the American Academy of Optometry (AAO) and was founded in 1947 for the “upholding, broadening, fostering, promoting and aiding of optometric education; the profession of optometry and its practitioners.”